How to stock a wedding bar
Most everyone wants a bar at their wedding, and most people have no idea how to stock it. What alcohol should you buy? What types and brands should you buy? And, how much alcohol should you buy for a wedding reception? No worries, friend. I’m here to help create a wedding bar guide for you!
As a “dry hire” mobile bartending service, we do not provide the actual alcohol for events. We do bring all the non-alcoholic supplies and then create a shopping list for our clients. We have learned a lot along the way as to how crowds typically drink, what their favorites are, and what’s a waste of money.
No one can 100% predict what your guests will prefer, but through the years we’ve come to know some patterns that we can always count on when it comes to what guests prefer.
What to stock a wedding bar with
The basics to stock any wedding bar are beer, wine, and many times liquor is added. However, each of those categories has many different variations to choose from and can become quickly overwhelming and costly!
The following is what we tell all of our clients to purchase for a standard open bar. Please note that we strongly suggest that you choose 1 brand for each of the varieties. A simple menu is best. Too many choices cause overwhelm for your guests and that leads to a long wait in line at the bar.
BEER
So many beer choices are available, from national brand standards, to a huge variety of craft brews! What should you choose?
Light beer
This is by far the most requested type of beer at every event we have served. Specifically, Bud Light and Miller Lite are the favorites.
IPA
You have to know your crowd a bit for this one, however, IPA’s are a consistent favorite for most. In our region, Bell’s Two Hearted Ale and Founders All-day IPA are consistently popular. We also suggest choosing a locally brewed favorite from your hometown.
Craft Lager/Amber/Dark
A third beer choice is optional, but nice to offer. This is where you can fill in the gap for beer lovers who like heavier and more flavorful beer. Choose a variety that suits the season your event is taking place. Summer? Go with a wheat beer such as Bell’s Oberon or Blue Moon. Fall/Winter? pick something with a little more heft such as a caramelly amber or chocolatey stout.
WINE
A good standard is to provide a white, a red and a sweet wine choice.
It’s always recommended to have a red and white variety of wine available for your guests. Depending on the time of year, you will adjust the number of each type you stock. Spring/Summer you should buy more white wine and Fall/Winter you should buy more red.
White Wine
Chardonnay or a Sauvignon Blanc are good choices no matter the season.
Red Wine
Although I think Cabernet is often the default red wine for events, I often suggest a red blend of Cab and Merlot.
Sweet Wine
For an optional third wine, I suggest choosing a white wine on the sweeter side. Often people who don’t drink a lot, but still want to try something from the bar, will enjoy sipping on light and sweet Moscato or Riesling, especially in the summer.
HARD SELTZERS & CIDERS
If you’re not planning on offering liquor as part of your bar, I’d suggest adding a hard seltzer or cider to the menu to add a bit more variety. Many guests prefer a lower-proof beverage these days and are thrilled with the option of a Whiteclaw or Truly’s instead of beer or wine. If you like hard cider, pick your favorite brand and throw it into the bar menu mix!
LIQUOR
Full disclosure, a bar menu with at least a few liquors gets ALL guests really excited!
Even if you think your crowd isn’t “big drinkers,” wedding receptions are perfect for trying out a cocktail that they probably wouldn’t order for themselves at a restaurant and they often jump at the chance. Cocktails definitely add a bit more fun to every event and ought to be seriously considered as part of your wedding bar menu.
Vodka
Vodka is by far the most popular choice of liquors. Vodka is light, mixes well with almost all flavors, and is the perfect option for those who don’t want sugary cocktails (i.e. vodka/soda). If we run out of liquor, it is always vodka. For this reason, we always bump up the quantity on our client’s shopping list. Suggested brands: Tito’s is a popular, mid-priced vodka that most everyone enjoys. Absolut vodka is also a well-liked brand.
Whiskey/Bourbon
Whiskey is the second most popular liquor requested at our bars. Although traditionally known as more of a guy’s drink, lots of the gals are now enjoying whiskey mules, mixed with Coke or the booze-forward Old Fashioned. Bourbon is also becoming a crowd favorite and can be interchangeable on the menu. Suggested brands: Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, and Crown Royal are well-loved standards for mixed drinks. If you prefer whiskey or bourbon ‘on the rocks,’ a more refined whiskey or bourbon should be considered, such as Woodford Reserve.
Tequila
Tequila, in my opinion, seems to be edging out rum in popularity lately, so we’ve been adjusting our suggestions for our shopping lists accordingly. Although margaritas are definitely a favorite, we’ve seen an uptick in guests requesting Palomas and Tequila Sunrises! Suggested brands: Casamigos Blanco and Patron are solid choices.
Rum & Gin
In our area here in the midwest, we find it’s either a rum crowd or a gin crowd, rarely will it be both. Hopefully, you will have an inkling as to what most will prefer, but if not, we will end up suggesting rum, and a bottle or two of gin. Suggested brands: Bacardi Silver and/or Captain Morgan for rum. Bombay Sapphire or Tanqueray for gin.
How much does it cost to stock a bar?
The answer to this falls into the “it depends” category, and is determined by your guest count, what you’d like served, and how long you’d like it served. We will cover what you can expect to budget and ways you can save money on your wedding bar in another blog. In the meantime, we’ve created a free alcohol cost calculator that you can input the specifics of your event and get a pretty accurate idea as to how much you can expect to spend.
I hope this bar menu guide is helpful in selecting what to stock a wedding bar with and has inspired some fun wedding bar options for you. If this information was useful to you, give us a like to let us know!
Cheers!
